Reading: Combination of books and technology make learning perfect – Stakeholders
By Armstrong – July 11, 20183111040
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Students of the 21st Century have been enjoined to combine book reading and technology to enhance perfect learning, as the reading habit of many have fast depreciated.

It was suggested that while technology via mobile phones, has taken over book reading in the lives of many youths, both the book and technology if properly used, could make learning awesome.
Speaking during Total’s 2018 Open Day and Book Reading event for secondary schools, Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr Idiat Adebuile said: ‘’Since the inception of technology, taking the mobile phone as a major example, there is no doubt that quite a lot of children have been attracted to the use of technology for learning.
At the same time, if the children are moving towards that trend, teachers are also expected to move towards that trend.’’ The Deputy Governor who spoke through the Director- General, Office of Education Quality Assurance, Ministry of Education, Mrs Ronke Soyombo said that books are important and still very vital to the child and so there is need for a balance, adding, ‘’that’s why the culture of reading still needs to be developed in our schools.”
She said: “Don’t forget that if you teach me the same way I was taught as a child, or the current children the same way you taught me, they are not likely to learn. Now that we have life long learners and quite a lot of children are actually using technology to their own advantage.” According to her, when you have a mobile phone, there are so many areas where you can download stories instead of buying books, you can easily flip through and see a lot of stories to read.
Adebule who expressed optimism that there are so many skills students can develop with the use of technology, added that quite a lot of children are accessing that. She, however, lamented that there are still few children that are carried away when they are playing games or going to unhealthy websites. She said: “Don’t let us move away from the fact that our children will ask us for games because there are some games that are actually educational,even though you feel the child is playing game, he is actually learning.
“At the end of the day, education has moved from where the child just have to sit with a book and read, don’t forget that it has to be balanced. The books are important and still very vital to the child so there is need for balance, that’s why the culture of reading still needs to be developed in our schools.
“Children still need to read books for both fiction and non- fiction. “We are raising the profile of reading and at the same time,we can still raise the profile of technology. There has to be a balance. With adults in the school, they must be able to place the children in the right positions with the use of technology because if you are telling them to use technology, how do you make sure they are not accessing what is not fit for their level?
“We must be security- conscious but at the same time, our children need more exposure like that because education has moved from the level where all you want to teach a child is what you know as a teacher. “If you are doing that, you are not likely to take those children places at all, they are not likely to become life-long learners or be able to develop themselves as creative thinkers.
“Lagos State Government has been able to develop our 10 public libraries and from the Governor’s speech, you will see that libraries of 18 public schools have been developed as well. As much as we are doing a lot to support reading in our schools, we are also doing a lot to raise the profile of technology in our schools.
Lagos State has been balancing it and that is what we expect in our schools. We expect children to access books and technology resources as well and to see how they can use it to their own advantage not just listening to music, though some children can be very musical, they need it but at the same time, they can read music because there are a lot of things we can do with books and there are so many ways we can combine technology and books.
“With what we have done here today, you can see that what Total is doing is to encourage and raise the profile of reading and that’s exactly what we need. “Despite the observations made by many that the reading culture of many Nigerians is poor, platforms such as this, can help raise the bar by encouraging and improving the reading culture of our children through exposure to books. Most times, skimming the surface of the contents of a book or reading only the highlights and summary of such books may not be helpful to develop their language skills. However, the language skills which are reading, writing, speaking and listening, are best developed when a book is well read, studied and attempt is made to probe the author’s message.
’’ Speaking in the same vein, Deputy General Manager, Public Affairs and Communicattions, Total E&P Nigeria Limited, Kenechi Esomeju gave five importance of reading. While elaborating on the theme: Read, Explain, Ask and Decide, Esomeju said we read to gain knowledge. Besides, she noted that reading is good for our health, builds our communication skills, improves our ability to focus on a task and improves our imagination.